Otb Slaying Suspect Held On Large Bond

A Chicago resident who allegedly stabbed to death a Lake Barrington man in a dispute over $3 was being held in Cook County Jail Monday in lieu of a $1 million cash bond, according to authorities.

Fredrick Jones, 30, of 4000 W. Washington Blvd., was ordered held on first-degree murder charges by Cook County Circuit Judge Joan Pucillo in connection with the slaying of 25-year-old Thomas Murray, according to Assistant State`s Atty. David Styler.

Murray was stabbed Friday night in The Winner`s Circle, a Loop off-track betting parlor at 177 N. State St., where Murray and his brother, Michael, went to watch the Evander Holyfield-Riddick Bowe heavyweight title fight, Styler said.

Authorities said that Thomas and Michael Murray, both of the Lake Barrington Shores complex on Cedar Ridge Court, were on the second floor of the betting parlor when Jones asked Thomas Murray if he could borrow $3, said Wentworth Area Violent Crimes Detective Joan McCarthy.

Thomas Murray, who police said did not know Jones, lent him the money, according to McCarthy. As the Murray brothers walked down the stairs to leave the parlor about 10:30 p.m., they once again saw Jones, who was riding an escalator to the second floor.

It was then that police believe Thomas Murray told Jones, ``I guess I`ll never see that money again,`` McCarthy said. According to Styler, Jones got off the escalator, followed the brothers down the stairs, and approached Murray, striking him in the chest with a clenched fist.

Thomas Murray walked out of the parlor, then told his brother he had been stabbed, Styler said. Murray, whose pulmonary artery had been severed, was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 12:28 a.m., according to the Cook County Coroner`s Office.

Jones told authorities that he borrowed money from Thomas Murray, and later they argued and he struck him, according to Styler. But Jones has denied stabbing Thomas, he said.

Police recovered a folding knife from Jones, Styler said. The weapon has a 4-inch blade, and could be concealed in a clenched fist, he said.

According to Styler, authorities will review a videotape made by cameras at the betting parlor to determine whether it caught any portion of the altercation between Jones and Murray.

Funeral services were held for Murray on Monday, said officials of the Blake-Lamb Funeral Home in Chicago.